Powers/Abilities: The Steel Serpent is a master of the
martial arts of K'un-Lun, including those practiced millennia ago. His skills
rival those of Iron Fist (Daniel Rand-K'ai) and he has several times bested
Daniel in combat, though usually with the element of surprise on his side. He is
exceptionally--though apparently not superhumanly--strong, fast, and agile, with
lightning quick reflexes. He has proven capable to draining the power the Iron
Fist (the energies of Shou-Lao) from its wielder by pressing his serpentine
tattoo against the wielder's dragon tattoo. At least on one occasion he retained
some fragment of Shou-Lao's power after the previous holder of the Iron Fist has
reclaimed his power. At his full power he has weathered assaults from the
superhumanly powerful Spider-Man, his reflexes and skills making him more than a
match for Spider-Man.

Davos also utilized the fiery energies of
the Serpent's Sting, though that may be a function of the taloned gloves he wore
at the time. When slain, Davos spirit is transferred into the Anomaly Gem alongside the spirits of all past Iron Fists. From there he can be resurrected
under certain circumstances.

As the Steel Phoenix, he had access to much
greater power, drawn from the life forces of the daughter of the Crane Mother.
This great enhanced his speed and strength. After his right hand hand was
severed in combat, he could generate a fist out of his chi.

Height: 6'1"Weight: 205 lbs.Eyes: BrownHair: White, formerly brown

History:
(Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb)) <Over thirty years ago> -The first born son of
K'un-Lun's Lei Kung the Thunderer, Davos knew he'd been marked for greatness. He
excelled under his father's training and he believed that one day he would prove
worthy of gaining the ritual Iron Fist garb and the power.

(Immortal Iron Fist#9
(fb)) - Davos defeated Wendell, and Wendell yielded to him.
Later, Davos sat with the otherwise shunned Wendell, asking
him to share his stories of New York.

Sometime later,
Wendell defeated Davos in combat, though Davos refused to yield until he was
knocked unconscious. When Wendell later asked Davos if he had thrown the fight,
perhaps out of pity, Davos assured him that he didn't and never would throw a
fight. He demanded the best from Wendell and promised only the best from
himself.

(Immortal Iron Fist#10
(fb) - BTS) - Wendell and Davos became close friends.
Knowing each was vying for the chance to face Shou-Lao and become the Iron Fist,
they told each other, "If it can't be me, let it be you," though neither was
certain that he really meant that.

(Immortal Iron Fist#10
(fb) - BTS) - Wendell and Davos watched an older class of
fighters' competition and saw one man earn the challenge of facing Shou-Lao. The
dragon tore him to peaces. Both Davos and Wendell then realized it was possible
they could lose.

(Immortal Iron Fist#10
(fb)) <Over thirty years ago> -A year later, Davos and Wendell competed in the final
tournament of their class. While Wendell and Davos each cheered the other on,
Wendell prayed he wouldn't have to face Davos, but he still studied Davos' moves
and looked for flaws.
Each eventually defeated their combatants in the semi-final
contest to determine who would possess the right to face
the dragon Shou-Lao the Undying and gain the Iron Fist power

(Immortal Iron Fist#10
(fb)) - Ten minutes into the match, Davos let a
devastating kick past him defenses. Though he normally would have allowed his
friend a fraction of a second to recover, this battle was too important, and
Wendell pressed the advantage, drop-kicking Davos to the ground. When Davos
refused to yield, Wendell was forced to strike him again.

(Immortal Iron Fist#10
(fb) / Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb)) - As Davos refused to
yield, even when badly beaten, Yü-Ti declared victory for Wendell; but Davos accused Yü-Ti of playing
favorites towards his son (Tu-An had made Wendell part of his house). Lei Kung commanded Davos silence and sent him from
the room. Collapsing to the ground, Davos told Wendell he should have killed
him.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11
(fb) / Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb)) - Furious at what he saw
as a betrayal from his friend, his father, and his ruler, that night Davos trekked towards Shou-Lao's cavern, challenging the
dragon, who soon appeared.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11
(fb)) - Awed by the dragon's presence, Davos felt doubt, realizing this was not
a fight he should be fighting.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11
(fb) / Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb)) - Shou-Lao drew first blood, marking
Davos with a scar over his left eye, but Davos knew the dragon's secret. He used
his body to block the power from Shou-Lao's heart, but he couldn't hold on long
enough--the pain was too great.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11
(fb)) - Davos told Shou-Lou to take his life and be done with it.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11
(fb) / Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb)) - The dragon looked at
him a moment, contempt in its great, golden eyes, and then it was gone, not
finding him worthy of killing.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11
(fb)) - Yü-Ti, Wendell, and the Terror Priests followed
shortly behind Lei Kung, who asked Davos what he had done, reminding him that
this was not meant for him. When Wendell asked Davos if he was alright, Davos
spat blood in his face and stared at him with sheer hatred.

(Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb) /
Immortal Iron Fist#12 (fb)) - Wendell did not challenge Shou-Lao,
instead, remembering warnings from Orson Randall, as well as Davos' defeat, he
turned his back on the challenge.

(Immortal Iron Fist#12
(fb)) - Wendell came to Davos to discuss his actions, and Davos laughed at him
and called him a coward. Wendell struck Davos, and the two fought savagely.
Seeing the stark hatred in his former friend, Wendell darted out a window and
rushed toward the portal to Earth, denying Davos' instructions to stay and
fight.

(Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb)) - Tuan banished Davos to Earth until the end of time for his sacrilege.

(Marvel Team-Up I#64 (fb) - BTS) - Tuan eventually died and
was succeeded by Wendell's brother. Davos waited, watched, and planned as
Wendell sired a son and was killed by Harold Meachum, and his son, Daniel,
became Iron Fist. Davos plotted to steal the Iron Fist power for himself after
Daniel returned to Earth.

(Iron Fist I#1) - At New York's Kennedy/JFK Airport, Colleen
Wing fled from her captors (including Gamal Hassan, a citizen of Halwan under
the control of Master Khan) at an airport, and she literally ran into Davos. As
she struggled to untangle herself from him, she tore open his shirt and glimpsed
his serpent tattoo. Telling her that there were some things a body shouldn't see
(if that body wanted to stay alive), he dropped her with paired shoulder chops
(presumably some sort of nerve pinch). When Hassan's men demanded Davos turn
Wing over to them he did so happily, but when they considered killing him b/c he
was a witness to their crimes, he told Hassan that a lot of his men would die if
he tried, and so they let him go. Davos then called Ward Meachum, telling him he
knew what his brother had done in the Himalayas 11 years ago (killing Wendell
Rand-K'ai). He told Meachum he didn't want money, only information: the Iron
Fist.

(Iron Fist I#4) - Davos was with Ward and Joy Meachum as they
watched a building collapse on Iron Fist during his battle with Radion. Davos
told them that he could feel that Iron Fist had survived due to his connection
to the energies of Shou-Lao. Davos promised that Iron Fist would not die until
Davos himself killed him.

(Iron Fist I#8) – When Joy Meachum asked Davos to investigate
her uncle’s shady business dealings, Davos reminded her that he wasn’t her
errand boy, after which she reminded him that he promised to serve her in return
for her help in killing Iron Fist. Later that day, at the Meachum Building,
Davos acted as Joy Meachum’s bodyguard during her meeting with Daniel Rand, a
meeting that was interrupted by the crimelord Chaka and his Golden Tigers.

(Iron Fist I#9 (fb)) – Davos protected Joy Meachum from the Golden Tigers and
got her to safety, while Chaka himself was dealing with Iron Fist.

(Iron Fist I#13) - Davos broke into Ward Meachum's house,
overpowered his guards, and threatened Meachum into withdrawing completely from
the affairs of Meachum, Inc. -- in essence, Ward was to disappear or die. With
that, Davos declared his debt to Joy Meachum paid in full and once again swore
to kill Iron Fist.

(Iron Fist I#14 (fb)) - Steel Serpent ambushed Iron Fist as he
headed home through a New York alley. Davos struck from behind and then--unphased
by Iron Fist's kick--struck him in the face and then bear hugged him, touching
their tattoos together and draining the power of Shou-Lao from Iron Fist.
Desperate, Iron Fist broke free but was left so weak he could barely stand.
Standing in the shadows so that only his tattoo could be seen, Davos called Iron
Fist by his full name, Daniel Rand-K'ai, indicating his knowledge of K'un-Lun,
and then told Iron Fist that he was his executioner.

(Iron Fist I#14 (fb) - BTS) - Davos then laughed and walked
away.

(Iron Fist I#15) - As Iron Fist fought off men trying to
hijack a Rand-Meachum shipment, the Steel Serpent struck again, kicking him from
behind, then punching him to the ground. Iron Fist kicked him back (recognizing
his attackers' style as being from K'un-Lun), but Davos again bear hugged him,
draining more of the power of Shou-Lao before releasing him. Davos told Iron
Fist that Iron Fist's life was his for the taking, and that he would take the
Iron Fist, which Daniel's father had denied Davos.

(Marvel Team-Up I#63) - Steel Serpent left a not on Danny
Rand's door: "Daniel Rand-K'ai, called Iron Fist, under the laws and traditions
of K'un-Lun, I challenge you to single combat, unto death. signed Steel Serpent"
Iron Fist appeared at the appointed place on the bluff overlooking the Hudson
Parkway and the river, and the Steel Serpent met him there. Iron Fist was
surprised that it was not Lei-Kung who met him, and Davos revealed himself to be
LEi-Kung's son. Davos further revealed that Wendell Rand-K'ai and Yü-Ti had
driven him from K'un-Lun before Daniel had been born. The two battled, and this
time Iron Fist held his own. However, Spider-Man who had followed Iron Fist
there leapt into the fray, hoping to help Iron Fist. Instead, the Steel Serpent
caught his foot and used him as a club to knock Iron Fist to the ground. Iron
Fist leapt to the attack again, but Davos ducked under his assault and bear
hugged him again, this time draining the full power of Shou-Lao from him. Davos
intended to slay the unconscious Iron Fist to prevent him from ever attempting
to retake the power, but Misty Knight appeared and used an energy blaster to
drive off the Steel Serpent.

(Marvel Team-Up I#64) - Wendell reminisced on his disgraceful
exile from K'un-Lun and his eventual claiming of the Iron Fist power while he
approached the hospital holding Daniel Rand-K'ai, intending to kill him. He was
torn from his flashback by Spider-Man, but the Steel Serpent stood up to
Spider-Man's punches, delivering several blows in return. Misty Knight and
Colleen Wing soon joined the fight, but when Spider-Man tried to web of Davos,
he instead caught Colleen's sheathed sword, enabling the Serpent to fight off
his attackers. As Spider-Man pursued him, the Steel Serpent struck back with the
Iron Fist power repeatedly, eventually cornering Spider-Man. Iron Fist then
appeared and challenged the Steel Serpent to a rematch. This time, the Serpent
relied entirely on raw power, neglecting his fighting skills, but even so he
proved an even match for the weakened Iron Fist (Daniel Rand). Colleen convinced
Misty and Spider-Man to stay out of the fight and allow Danny to keep his honor,
but soon Davos began to glow. As he had not been keeping the Iron Fist power in
check, and so the power had begun to build up in him. When the power finally
began to turn on Davos, he had not the will to hold it back, and it began to
feed upon him. Danny bear hugged Davos, trying to take the Iron Fist power back
before it could slay Davos. Danny successfully reclaimed the power, but Davos
was consumed by it.

(Iron Fist II#1 (fb) - BTS) - With his physical death, Davos'
spirit was cast into a realm accessed via the Anomaly Gem alongside the spirits
of the dead Iron Fists of the past. After years trapped there, Davos had been
driven nearly mad. However, from the past Iron Fists Davos had also learned
secrets of the K'un-Lun fighting technique--and several other things--far beyond
his previous skills. Davos somehow enlisted the Elder of the Universe known as
the Contemplator to manipulate Daniel Rand-K'ai to gather the fragments of the
Anomaly Gem, which would release Davos so that they could again face each other
to determine which of them more deserved to hold the power of the Iron Fist.

(Marvel Comics Presents#125/4(fb), 125/4-132/4 - all BTS) -
Daniel found himself unable to summon the Iron Fist power, and the Contemplator
manipulated him into gathering the fragments of the Anomaly Gem, which would
allegedly restore his power.

(Iron Fist II#1) - In the Himalayan mountains by the portal to
K'un-Lun, Daniel joined the last pieces of the Anomaly Gem, which shattered
anew, releasing Davos who revealed the Contemplator's duplicity. Davos then
demanded trial by combat for possession of the sacred Iron Fist, promising to
kill Daniel once he had claimed his power. After a short battle, Davos again
managed to bear hug Daniel and drain the power of Shou-Lao from him.

(Iron Fist II#1) - Davos confronted his father, calling
himself as Iron Fist and telling Lei-Kung that he would be K'un-Lun's new
leader. When Lei-Kung tried to tell him that the cosmic Contemplator would not
have wanted him to be Iron Fist, Davos insisted that he leave the city or be
killed. Shortly thereafter Lei-Kung met with the weak yet recovered Daniel,
telling him of Davos' actions and requesting his help.

(Iron Fist II#2) - Lei-Kung led Daniel--along with Misty
Knight and Colleen Wing--to K'un-Lun, and Daniel convinced Yü-Ti to arrange a
meeting with Davos. Daniel challenged him to combat for the Iron Fist power, and
Davos appeared, promising Daniel's death yet again. Daniel surprised Davos with
a powerful kick, and Davos countered by summoning his Serpent's Sting. Daniel
dodged the assault and the two parried back and forth for some time. Davos
summoned the Iron Fist to use against Daniel, but Daniel dodged this attack as
well and then delivered several blows to Davos, stunning him and allowing Daniel
to grasp him and reclaim Shou-Lao's power. Yü-Ti proclaimed that custom dictated
that Daniel slay his fallen opponent, but Daniel refused, striving to prove a
good example to the people of K'un-Lun.
As Davos was again exiled from K'un-Lun, Lei-Kung attempted
to make amends with him, but Davos swatted away his hand, telling him that he
would continue to follow his own path to a greater place, a greater destiny.

(New Warriors II#5) - The Hand's young leader, Junzo
Muto--under the guidance of his teacher, Hiromitsu, drained Davos' portion of
the power of the Iron Fist.

(Immortal Iron Fist#1 (fb) - BTS
/ Immortal Iron Fist#4 (fb) - BTS) - Davos
was restored by the Crane Mother, promising to locate and destroy the renegade
Iron Fist Orson Randall in return. His power was further enhanced via the
consumption of the life forces of the Crane Mother's daughters.

(Immortal Iron Fist#1 (fb) - BTS) -
Davos allied with Hydra against Iron Fist in a plot to obtain Rand-Meachum's
Randrapid train to build a tunnel through the K'un-Lun mountains.

(Immortal Iron Fist#1) - Davos
located Randall in an opium den in Bangkok, Thailand and reported this to the
Crane Mother, who sent a pair of her daughters to investigate.

(Immortal Iron Fist#2 - BTS) -
Agents of Davos, posing as NYPD, picked up Randall as he arrived in a US
airport, but Randall determined the truth and broke free.

(Immortal Iron Fist#3) - Davos
met with Xao, spokesman for Hydra's front company, Wai-Go, expressing his
displeasure at Hydra's failure. After slaying a Hydra agent who had failed to
engage Iron Fist, Davos sent other agents to bring in both Orson Randall and
Daniel Rand.

(Immortal Iron Fist#4) -
Slaughtering a group of Hydra agents in a training session, Davos then took out
two whole legions of Hydra agents and destroyed a Mechagorgon. He then contacted
the Crane Mother, asking for a dozen or more daughters to allow him to reach his
power's peak to stop his foes. Crane Mother agreed to the request.

(Immortal Iron Fist#5) -
Crane Mother sent over a dozen daughters to Steel Serpent, along with the
warning that if he failed they would consume his immortal soul.

(Immortal Iron Fist#5) - Davos
and his agents greeted Orson Randall and Daniel Rand when they arrived at the
latter's apartment.

(Immortal Iron Fist#6) -
Maintaining his power by consuming the Crane daughters' life forces, Davos
eventually attacked Orson Randall, who let Davos kill him so he wouldn't have to
keep running. Randall gave Rand his chi, enabling him to drive off Davos, who
vowed to face him again in the Tournament of the Heavenly Cities.

(Immortal Iron Fist#8)
- Davos contacted Xao and delivered a message to Jeryn Hogath, warning him that
his mother would be further harmed if he did not complete the Randrapid train on
schedule.
Later, Davos was present in the Heart of Heaven as
Yü-Ti introduced Iron Fist to the other
immortal warriors who would be present at the tournament. Yü-Ti
and the Crane Mother prevented Iron Fist from attacking Davos.

(Immortal Iron Fist#9)
- Orphan bet on Fat Cobra defeating Iron Fist in a wager against the Prince of
Orphans, a wager he won.

(Immortal Iron Fist#11)
- Renaming himself Steel Phoenix, Davos entered into combat with Tiger's
Beautiful Daughter. After she twice wounded him, he stabbed at her eyes and
narrowly missed, but left himself open for her to take off his right hand with
one of her fans. When she called him a bully and a sad little tyrant, he forged
an energy fist and struck her with his Steel Phoenix blow, dropping her. After
he savagely struck her again, she tried to yield, but he refused to accept it,
preparing to strike her again. Lei Kung stopped the fight, announcing Davos as
victor.

(Immortal Iron Fist#12)
- As the Prince of Orphans prepared to face Fat Cobra in battle, the Prince of
Orphans stated that seeing the fire in violence unleashed by Davos had made him
eager to face it himself. He asked permission to face Davos instead of Fat
Cobra, and Davos, correcting him that his title was Steel Phoenix, accepted.
Davos warned the Prince of Orphans that he would not go easy on him due to his
age and venerated status, and the Prince told him to shut up and called him a
child. Davos struck savagely, but the Prince passed through his blow in
immaterial form and then struck Davos repeatedly but remaining unable to be
touched. The Prince of Orphans reminded him that this was a tournament with
rules, and he then caught Davos as he collapsed and taught him about having a
code.
Unconscious, Davos was unable to yield, but the Prince of
Orphans announced his defeat.
Later, Lei Kung visited Davos as he recovered in bed,
checking on him, but Davos (speaking with a broken jaw or just a very swollen
tongue) claimed to be fine. Lei Kung reminded him that there would soon be
violence in K'un-Lun and asked him whose side he would stand on. Davos
responded, "...the same side I'm always on. Mine. Now leave me to heal."

(Immortal Iron Fist#13)
- A bandaged Davos, bereft of his right hand, sat at the table with the other
immortal weapons (Bride of Nine Spiders, Dog Brother#1, Fat Cobra, Tiger's
Beautiful Daughter), but apart from them all. The Prince of Orphans appeared and
told them of a plot to destroy K'un-Lun, which would also destroy the other six
realms as they were all joined with the Heart of Heaven. Davos accused him of
lying and rushed off and confronted Lei Kung, telling him that the Crane Mother
and Xao only wanted to destroy the Iron Fist, not all of K'un-Lun or the other
Cities of Heaven. Lei Kung threw Davos a spear and sparred with him as they
argued, and Lei Kung told Davos that both Xao and the Crane Mother were using
and betraying him. Lei Kung dropped Davos and told him he needed to join with
him to save K'un-Lun, but Davos was too furious to accept this just then.

(Immortal Iron Fist#14)
- As Xao and Hydra invaded K'un-Lun, Davos observed Yü-Ti
(Nu-An) rushing in the other direction, followed him to the Randall Gate, and
dropped him, denouncing him as always having been a worm. He then saw that Orson
Randall's daughter and Lei-Kung's Army of Thunder had defeated Nu-An's Terror
Priests. Hydra agents then rushed through the Gate and, realizing that they had
come to destroy K'un-Lun, and he joined the Army of Thunder in fighting them
off, making another energy fist for the battle. The battle carried into the
battle between the other immortal weapons and Hydra, and Davos helped defeat
Hydra.

After the battle, Davos approached Lei
Kung, telling him that the Crane Mother had cut him off from his chi source and
that he was Steel Phoenix no more. He admitted his crimes, including giving Lei
Kung's journals to the Crane Mother, allying with Xao and Hydra, and killing
Orson Randall, and accepting what punishment Lei Kung had to offer. Lei Kung
brought Davos back to the city and later took him to the cavern of Shou-Lao
where he instructed him to watch over and protect the dragon, which would soon
be reborn for her egg, until the time she no longer needed such aid. Lei Kung
told him he would spend his solitary time in consolation, hopefully punishing
himself for his crimes and eventually finding some solace.

Comments: Created by Chris Claremont, John Byrne, and
Al McWilliams.

Davos has an entry in OHotMU 2006 A-Z#10.

Thanks to Attok12 who added the info from
Iron Fist I#8-9 & 13 that I had missed.

Profile by Snood.

CLARIFICATIONS:
No known connection to:

Steel Serpent ( ) - encountered Iron
Fist, sought to take over Kun-Lun, master of the delayed
death touch--Deadly Hands of Kung Fu#10